Health Equity: A Framework for Improving Health Outcomes for People Living with Diabetes

The pandemic has exposed deep health disparities in our society, with people of color experiencing significantly worse outcomes from COVID-19. These disparities, unfortunately, are very similar to those experienced by people with diabetes. What do we know about the social determinants of health that have led to these inequities? What is being done to level the field? How can we improve outcomes for all people with diabetes? What mindsets need to change as we do this work? Join us to learn from experts in health equity to learn how to narrow the health equity gap.

The conversations on Food Policy, Health Literacy/Education, Economic Barriers, Social Barriers/Stigma, the Urban Environment, the Rural Experience, and Racism and Healthcare Justice, is led by our incredible community manager, Cherise Shockley.

Our highly-regarded speakers are Michael Currie, Senior Vice President and Chief Health Equity Officer, UnitedHealth Group; Conrod Kelly, Executive Director, Policy/Government Relations - Social Determinants of Health, Merck; and Lili Gil Valletta, Co-founder and CEO, CIEN+ and Culturintel. The panel will be moderated by diaTribe Founder Kelly Close.

PANELISTS

U. Michael Currie

Senior Vice President and Chief Health Equity Officer, UnitedHealth Group

Michael has led the coordination of health equity efforts across UnitedHealth Group since June of 2010. He is responsible for the development and execution of enterprise efforts, initiatives, and interventions to identify health disparities, as well as the enhancement or implementation of programs, services, and strategies to address identified health disparities. He has held roles in both the public and private sectors with responsibilities related to disease prevention, wellness, and health benefits, and he has spent close to 30 years educationally and professionally focused on population health management. Michael has contributed to numerous health equity and health disparities related articles and publications, been a guest lecturer at public and private organizations as well as academic institutions, and continues to serve on various local and national boards and committees focused on addressing barriers to health care and improving health outcomes.  He completed his undergraduate studies at Morehouse College, received his MPH from George Washington University and his MBA from Johns Hopkins University.

Conrod Kelly

Executive Director, Policy/Government Relations - Social Determinants of Health, Merck

In his role at Merck, Conrod is responsible for developing and testing innovative approaches to help strengthen health systems and reduce disparities to enhance patient and population health outcomes. Prior to this role, he was the Executive Director for the US Diabetes Franchise. During his 10 years at Merck he has worked across several therapeutics areas including cardiovascular and Alzheimer’s disease. Prior to joining Merck, Conrod worked for Johnson & Johnson in the medical devices and diagnostics division (diabetes). Before that, he worked in Vaccines for GlaxoSmithKline.  Conrod was recently recognized at the United Nations with the SDG Leadership Award for using media and marketing for good, particularly impacting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 3) for his work on the film “A Touch of Sugar.” Conrod was also recognized in 2018 as one of the Top Blacks in Healthcare by the Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University. Conrod stays connected to the community by sitting on the executive board of Big Brothers Big Sisters -- Independence Region. He is the author of  RESTAGED:  A Mental Model for Personal and Professional Growth. Conrod holds a BS and MBA from Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University. 

Lili Gil Valletta

Co-founder and CEO, CIEN+ and Culturintel

Lili is an award-winning entrepreneur, recognized cultural intelligence® expert, A.I. tech innovator, and World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. As an immigrant from Colombia, who came to the U.S. at the age of 17 without speaking English, she embodies the American Dream. After a successful corporate career, including a 10-year tenure at Johnson & Johnson, where she served as Global Director of Marketing Services in the Pharma sector, Lili co-founded CIEN+ and CulturIntel. With offices in the U.S. and Latin America, her firm offers big data analytics, consulting and marketing solutions to help leaders successfully drive growth and impact with diverse market segments. She is a regular independent TV commentator seen on Fox News, Fox Business, and CNN en Español. Lili is an active voice elevating and promoting Hispanic prosperity, equity, and business inclusion, collaborating in various initiatives at the United Nations, the World Economic Forum, the White House, and as a mentor to the Stanford Latino Entrepreneur Leaders Program. Lili holds a degree in Business Administration from Southwestern Adventist University, an MBA from the University of Colorado, and an executive degree from the Harvard Kennedy School in Global Leadership and Public Policy.

MODERATOR

Kelly L. Close

Founder at The diaTribe Foundation and President at Close Concerns

Kelly is the founder and Chair of the Board of The diaTribe Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of people living with diabetes and prediabetes, and advocating for action. Since 2006, she has been editor-in-chief at diaTribe.org, our free website focused on making people with diabetes healthier, happier, and more hopeful. We send diaTribe mailers weekly to over 225,000 people with diabetes and their families. Since 2002, Kelly has been leading Close Concerns, a healthcare information firm focused on diabetes, obesity, digital health, and connected care. Each year Kelly and her colleagues attend over 40 scientific and regulatory gatherings in the US and around the world, focused in these areas; they read the key medical literature in the field and write regularly about dozens of private and public companies and nonprofit organizations in the field. Kelly graduated from Amherst College and Harvard Business School and lives in San Francisco with her husband and three children. Kelly's passion for diabetes comes from her extensive professional work as well as her personal experience living with diabetes for nearly 35 years.

About Musings

Musings Under the Moon is one of The diaTribe Foundation's most treasured events, as it engages a diverse audience in thought-provoking dialogue and provides an opportunity to connect healthcare providers, business leaders, people with diabetes, advocates, families, entrepreneurs, and policymakers.

In our previous panels on May 11, and June 5, 2020 we explored opportunities for personalizing health care in the shadow of the massive virtual revolution at our fingertips and learned about the most exciting opportunities in new therapies and technologies. We learned from expert panelists with hundreds of audience members from across the world, some of whom had never met someone else living with diabetes. Through open chat rooms available to the audience before and after the event, the power of community and learning from others’ lived experiences shined.

Thank you to our sponsors for making this event possible

Gold Sponsors

Abbott

Astra Zeneca

One Drop

Silver Sponsors

Dexcom

Sanofi

Bronze Sponsors

Insulet

Lilly

Medtronic

Novo Nordisk